$122 million bid received for Journal Register Company

The process under which the owner of the Register Citizen was to be auctioned concluded last week with only one bidder.

The sole bid of $122.15 million for the Journal Register Company, which is under federal Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, came from 21st CMH Acquisition Co. 21st CMH Acquisition is a subsidiary of Alden Global Capital LLC, which is the owner of JRC.

The U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York approved the details of the auction in December. The court has a hearing scheduled Thursday at which time the court will decide whether to approve the 21st CMH Acquisition bid.

Advertisement

Jonathan Cooper, vice president of media relations and employee communication for Digital First Media, could not immediately comment on what the next step in the process is for JRC if the court approves the bid.

JRC's Chapter 11 bankruptcy declaration in September 2012 was the second time in three years that the company went to court to seek protection from its creditors. The company previously was under Chapter 11 bankruptcy for a six-month period during 2009.

But when JRC emerged from Chapter 11 protection in August 2009, it still had approximately $225 million in debt that includes leases, defined benefit pensions and other liabilities. John Paton, chief executive officer of Digital First Media, which operates JRC and MediaNews Group, said JRC can "no longer afford the legacy obligations incurred in the past."

At the time of the filing in September, Paton said that, "The Journal Register Company has made solid progress in its digital transformation in the last two years, more than doubling its digital audience with 235 percent digital revenue growth from 2009 to 2011. But that transformation is threatened by a decline in print advertising revenue -- the company's largest revenue source -- and legacy costs incurred when Journal Register Company's total revenues were nearly twice the size it is today. Since 2009 the company's pension liabilities grew 52 percent."

In addition to the Register Citizen, JRC owns several other Connecticut publications, including Connecticut magazine, the New Haven Register and the Middletown Press. Overall, the company's more than 350 multi-platform products reach an audience of 21 million people each month, according to its website.

Call Luther Turmelle at 203-789-5706.

Correction: An earlier version of this story misidentified 21st CMH Acquisition Co. as CMH Acquisition Co.